Really no surprise after Manning. The rookie Brock Osweiler can’t be placed ahead of the veteran Caleb Hanie on the first depth chart. Hanie signed a two-year, $2.25 million contract in March but no money is guaranteed until he makes the roster.

The Broncos’ decision makers need to see these quarterbacks perform in the preseason.

“As coach Fox said, the games are our resume,” said Adam Weber, who is listed No. 4 on the depth chart.

Weber could return to the practice squad for a second year. Osweiler, a second-round rookie, will be no worse than the No. 3 quarterback. The question is whether Hanie’s experience fends the kid off at No. 2.

The rookie from Arizona State, who left after his true junior season, Osweiler had been the No. 4 QB through the offseason practices and Day 1 of training camp. But he took third-team snaps ahead of Adam Weber on Friday and second-team snaps ahead of Caleb Hanie on Saturday.

“I got quite a few today so I was pretty happy with that,” Osweiler said. “”I made one error; threw an interception. In route. Didn’t see the safety coming down. It’s a tough throw into that coverage. I have to know to check down. One thing I think I do pretty well is when I do make a mistake on the field, learn from it and not make the same mistake twice.’’

Right guard:
Chris Kuper moved pretty well considering the ankle/fibula injury he is trying to recover from. But in team drills, Kuper rested while veteran Manny Ramirez lined up with the No. 1 offense.

In drafting Derek Wolfe with their highest selection in the draft, the Broncos made it clear they want more pass rush from their interior defensive linemen.

But not in practice.

Veteran defensive tackle Justin Bannan said Tuesday that the “no-contact” rule has been made crystal clear as the Broncos began organized team activities this week.

“When No. 18 is back there, you better stay the hell away from him. We’re going to talk about pass rush, but I love my job at the same time,” Bannan said. “We’re going to work on our pass-rush techniques but at the same time, let’s be smart out there.”

The Broncos have filled the vacant spots on the active roster with two familiar faces.

Safety Kyle McCarthy and linebacker Mike Mohamed were both signed to the active roster from the practice squad. McCarthy was on the 53-man roster for more than half of 2010, and Mohamed, a rookie, started this season on the active roster.

The two players fill the spots left vacant by Kyle Orton’s release and the injury to cornerback Cassius Vaughn. The team chose not to activate quarterback Adam Weber, who remains on the practice squad.

San Diego — As my partner Lindsay Jones reported today, Broncos cornerback/kick returner Cassius Vaughn suffered a fracture in the lower part of his fibula while returning his team’s first kickoff Sunday.

It was a nice return of 36 yards that ended badly for Vaughn. With just 5 weeks remaining in the regular season, Vaughn could be placed on injured reserve. The Broncos currently have just 51 healthy players on their 53-man roster so their personnel department will be busy this week. It remains possible that practice squad quarterback Adam Weber gets promoted this week.

Tim Tebow looks on as Brady Quinn takes the field with the second-team offense on Saturday night.

Brady Quinn will be the No. 2 quarterback tonight. But if Tim Tebow is the No. 2 quarterback in the more pivotal third preseason game next week against Seattle, would you call his No. 3 standing today a demotion? Or a switch?

Because that may be the case. Tebow got an extended look with the No. 2 offense against the No. 2 defense last week in Dallas. Quinn played impressively enough with the No. 3 offense against the No. 3 defense in the game at Dallas that the Broncos thought it only fair that they test him with No. 2 vs. No. 2 tonight.

Here’s a breakdown of the 17 undrafted rookies the Broncos signed Wednesday. Whether there’s a a player on the list who can break through to the regular-season roster remains to be seen. It’s often a mystery how well, sometimes, some late-round or undrafted guys adapt to the NFL. But it does happen.

The best of the bunch might — might — be Mario Fannin, Brandon Bing and Adam Weber…

Nicki Jhabvala is a Broncos beat writer for The Denver Post. She was previously the digital news editor for sports. Before arriving in Denver, she spent five years at Sports Illustrated working primarily as its online NBA editor. She also spent two years as a home page editor at the New York Times.